从mass bleaching eventsdevastating the coral ecosystems of the Great Barrier Reef to January temperatures in Sydney that spurredrecord-breaking warm waters, Australia’s ocean is ground zero for the effects of climate change.

但是有希望的理由。

Ambitious ideas from young Gen Z entrepreneurs in Australia are getting a boost from the生成撞击孵化器from HP and nonprofitOcean Impact Organization(OIO). Their winning plans will help tackle one of the greatest challenges of this moment, starting with restoring the continent’s some 22,000 miles of coastline and protecting marine life.

Some are targetingsingle use plastics;油气基础设施和化学泄漏电池;而其他人则在重新思考材料和消费产品的制造。

“我们属于这个星球，并通过智力赋予我们的力量，重要的是要照顾我们的环境。”Sine Surf，具有工程和纳米技术学位的狂热冲浪者，并获得了最高奖项。“一个绿色和生物学丰富的星球是一个光明的未来，我们都应该努力努力。”

Theau started his company after looking into the materials used in surfboards, especially ones marketed as “wooden.” Most are in fact, made primarily of polyurethane foam and fiberglass, with thin wood veneer, and coated with epoxy — all materials that are harmful to ocean health.

“Just because a product has been made a certain way for a very long time does not mean that that is the only way it can be made, or should be made,” he says. “In our streamlined and internet-friendly world it’s easy to forget about the full lifecycle of the products we use.”

Sydney-based Sine Surf makes hand-shaped, hollow wood boards that are milled directly from sustainably sourced Paulownia timber, which enables the finished boards to be both lightweight, flexible yet durable, and more than 95% biodegradable. Paulownia, a tree native to China, is在生态上是合理的because it grows quickly and sequesters comparatively high amounts of carbon dioxide.

正弦冲浪的制造工艺从头开始重新发明，包括针对董事会的空心基础设施的新设计，创建了纳米硅硅生物环氧综合材料以覆盖板外部的外部，以及一种新的CNC加工方法。

All together, the process produces one-twelfth the amount of plastic waste of regular surfboard production. “From the manufacturing of a product from raw materials to the end of life, there is often a large amount of waste and emissions that we are not aware of as consumers,” Theau says.

As winner, Sine Surf will have access to funding, technology, and expert mentorship from HP and OIO, to help grow the business. This year, Sine aims to expand its production capabilities with plans to collaborate on a new performance line with world-renowned board shapers in the industry.

孵化器竞赛的其他参与者重点介绍了诸如海洋动力可再生能源之类的主题。可持续捕鱼和水产养殖；运输和供应链管理；以及生态系统保护和恢复。

Nurtured.cocofounder and chief strategist Curtis Sciacca took second runner-up. His research aims to create scalable artificial reef structures to help repopulate coral colonies and rebuild the Great Barrier Reef along Queensland’s coastline. The company filed for a patent for it’s Nurtured reef, which provides a limestone-coated, mineral-rich habitat for natural coral colony development and deters algae growth.

Sciacca说：“ Co的梦想是对海洋健康产生全球影响，但首先我们必须拯救最接近家的生态系统。”“我们渴望将更多的人工礁在水中取出，并在扩展和扩展到大规模制造之前继续微调我们的恢复实践。”

亚军是Sian Murray，联合创始人Pleasant State, a maker of concentrated, just-add-water products that help people clean their homes without harmful chemicals and with less plastic waste. “In Australia, we buy over 23 million single-use plastic cleaning products a year,” she says, “I made the conscious decision a while ago to tackle the plastic epidemic head on.”

Pleasant State’sproduct lineup包括可重新填充的喷雾瓶，超细纤维清洁布以及可溶解的酒吧，当与水混合时，为房屋的不同房间生产清洁喷雾剂。

“我最初来自墨尔本，向北移到阳光海岸，以靠近海洋。我冲浪，我游泳，我潜水……这是我快乐的地方，”她说。“以此为核心，我这样做是因为我希望子孙后代能够享受相同的浪潮，相同的壮丽海岸线以及我们今天所经历的对自然的同样的爱。”